Pope Francis Visits South Korea

August 15, 2014

Pope Francis arrived in South Korea this week, the first papal visit to the divided peninsula in more than two decades. During the trip, Francis is honoring Korean martyrs from the 18th and 19th centuries and encouraging young Asians to keep promoting the faith. According to the Pew Research Center, eleven percent of South Koreans are Catholic. Christians overall make up the largest religious group there, with twenty-nine percent of the population, followed by Buddhists at twenty-three percent. Forty-six percent say they are religiously unaffiliated.